This invention relates to the opening of the hide of a carcass during carcass processing operations preparatory to removal of the hide.
The presently widely used method of opening the hide of a carcass such as a beef carcass is substantially a manual operation. The beef carcass is hung from overhead supports by the rear legs. In this position, the hide is opened up manually by slaughtermen. The carcass hide is then cut away from the rear legs, belly and brisket in a manner suitable to the type of hide puller being used on the processing line. The labour involved in this operation adds substantially to the total cost of processing the carcass.